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Professional Highlights

"I think part of the problem is we usually associate it with smoking." Dr. Aye says. "And yet, more than half of lung cancer today is being discovered in non smokers or former smokers"

"If there are some early symptoms, if someone is a smoker, ask your physician for a chest x-ray. it's politically incorrect for me to say that because chest xrays for screening are not recommended, but I think it's up to the individual to be an advocate for themselves..." Read the transcript

Videos

Professional Highlights

"I think part of the problem is we usually associate it with smoking." Dr. Aye says. "And yet, more than half of lung cancer today is being discovered in non smokers or former smokers"

"If there are some early symptoms, if someone is a smoker, ask your physician for a chest x-ray. it's politically incorrect for me to say that because chest xrays for screening are not recommended, but I think it's up to the individual to be an advocate for themselves..." Read the transcript

"In 1181 patients undergoing open Hill repair with median follow up of 9.98 years: 93% of patients had good or excellent results ... Open Hill repair was successfully performed by surgeons not trained by Hill"

Buduhan G, Louie BE, Vallières E, Orlina J, Aye RW. "The Right Lateral Decubitus Position is Associated with a Weakened Lower Esophageal Sphincter - Position Related Physiology of the Normal Gastroesophageal Junction." International Society for Diseases of the Esophagus. Budapest. September 2008.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is the most common disorder of the upper gastrointestinal track, affecting nearly 40% of the American population. Antisecretory medications such as omeprazole are the mainstay of treatment, but 40% of patients have incomplete control of symptoms. While surgical repair (fundoplication) is highly effective, only 1% of patients have an operation, leaving a large group of individuals incompletely treated.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is the most common disorder of the upper gastrointestinal track. It's estimated that up to 40% of Americans take some form of anti-acid medication at least once a month, making it one of the most commonly used types of medication in the world.

Heartburn is simply a burning sensation behind the breast bone, and is not necessarily from GERD. It can be caused by a variety of other disorders, including heart disease, musculoskeletal disorders, and disorders of other parts of the gastrointestinal track, including the stomach, pancreas, gall bladder, liver, or intestine A simple way to differentiate GERD from heartburn is to take antacids or over the counter acid suppressants. There are two classes of acid suppressants: H2 blockers like ranitidine/zantac; and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) like prilosec/omeprazole. If the symptom partially or completely responds, it is likely caused by stomach acid, particularly GERD.

How is GERD managed?

GERD is rarely life-threatening and can generally be managed symptomatically. Some may ...

We screen for breast cancer with mammography, colon cancer with colonoscopy, and prostate cancer with blood tests and exams – why not lung cancer?

If you’re a smoker or a former smoker, or even if you’ve had significant second-hand smoke exposure, you’ve probably worried about your chances of getting lung cancer, and whether there is anything you can do about it. Perhaps you even asked your doctor about getting an x-ray; he or she may have told you that there is no proof that it helps. That’s because a national study done years ago showed no benefit from getting chest X-rays, and therefore it’s not recommended.

The studies

However, since 2000, Swedish has participated in an international study – the International Early Lung Cancer Action Project (I-ELCAP) - to see whether CT scans or CAT scans – very highly detailed X-rays – might be able to find lung cancer earlier and improve cure rates. The study was begun by a group of investigators from Cornell University in New York. They knew that CT scans were very sensitive and would probably show a lot of abnormalities, and that most of them wouldn’t be cancer, so they worked out a system to determine which abnormalities were likely to be cancer. Their system worked, and they showed that when lung cancer was discovered through their screening system the cure rate was over 80%. That’s remarkable, because the normal cure rate for lung cancer is only 15%.

Because of their success, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) began a randomized study with over 50,000 participants. Half of them got annual CT scans and the other half got only chest X-rays. The results were just completed and were very exciting. The group that got CT scans had 20% fewer deaths from lung cancer than the other group!

The results are still being analyzed and there are concerns about safety from too many interventions, radiation exposure, and cost. It will take time to work through these issues, and there is still no general endorsement of lung cancer screening. However, several national organizations now cautiously support screening in high risk groups that meet the criteria for the national study.